A settlement has been reached in a case regarding unclaimed property against the state of Delaware, Arkansas state officials announced Wednesday.
This comes after a 2016 lawsuit where Arkansas lead a 30-state coalition in seeking more that $250 million in unclaimed money from uncashed money orders sent through MoneyGram and then wrongfully handed over to Delaware.
The United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 2023 that the funds should be returned to the states where the unclaimed money orders were purchased.
According to Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, the state’s share of settlement totals $761,907.91 plus interest earned and expenses, adding that he was looking forward to “reuniting the people of Arkansas with their money.”
“This settlement concludes nearly eight years of litigation over unclaimed Official Checks and returns more than $190 million to the people of Arkansas, our coalition partners, and other states,” Griffin said. “I’m proud of our work on this important case, and I’m grateful to our coalition partnersparticularly the attorney generals of California, Texas, and Wisconsin, and attorneys for Pennsylvania – for their hard work on this matter.”
According to state officials, Delaware is set to transfer more than $102 million to the coalition states under the settlement and an additional $89 million from MoneyGram will also be distributed among all 50 states. The coalition states will receive nearly $55 million plus interest from MoneyGram.
MoneyGram will also be required to report sums on unclaimed unofficial checks and funds that have been deposited with the state auditor unclaimed property fund.
The money deposited with the unclaimed property fund can be reclaimed by Arkansas residents, according to the attorney general’s office.
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